World at a Glance

BAGHDAD -- After nearly a dozen delays and a final, rowdy session, Iraq's Parliament passed a law Sunday setting national elections for January.

The elections, now scheduled for Jan. 23, had been held up by an intense dispute over the oil-rich region of Kirkuk, where both Arabs and Kurds claim a majority. Lawmakers resolved the disagreement for now by agreeing to use voter rolls from 2009, and not a 2004 voter list compiled before many Kurds had moved into the region.

The lawmakers also resolved another key issue: how to list candidates on the ballot. Under the new law, candidates will be listed by name -- a so-called open list -- and not by party affiliation, a "closed list" in which voters do not know who the individual candidates are. The decision to use an open list will make it more difficult for religious-based parties to win support.

"This agreement advances the political progress that can bring lasting peace and unity to Iraq and allow for the orderly and responsible transition of American combat troops out of Iraq by next September," President Barack Obama said.

Many Kurds were expelled from the area under Saddam Hussein, but have returned since the March 2003 U.S. invasion -- in numbers other Iraqis say exceed their previous population. The decision to use voter registration lists from 2009 was a victory for the Kurds.

Sunday's final session was raucous, with lawmakers shouting and a few storming out of the session. One of the most contentious issues was whether internally displaced Iraqis, who number as many as 2.5 million, could cast votes in their former home regions. In the end, it was decided they could not.

Palestinian leader urged to run for re-election

HALHUL, West Bank -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas greets a supporter Sunday in Halhul as thousands turned out to urge him to run again for the presidency after his announcement that he did not want a second term. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the U.S. for a three-day trip, will meet with President Barack Obama on Monday.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which also wounded 36 people on the outskirts of the northwestern city, saying it was avenging Mayor Abdul Malik's efforts to raise a militia to fight the Islamist rebels.

Pakistan is waging a military offensive against the insurgents in their northwestern mountain hideouts.

Meanwhile, The New Yorker magazine is reporting in its latest issue that the United States has been negotiating with Islamabad about the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal. Current and former officials in Washington and Pakistan said agreements would allow specially trained American units to provide added security for the Pakistani arsenal in case of a crisis.

2 die in Indonesia quake

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- Two people were killed and dozens injured after a strong quake with a magnitude of 6.7 rocked the Indonesian island of Sumbawa on Monday, officials said.

The two fatalities occurred when buildings collapsed. An Indonesian Health Ministry statement said 38 people were sent to hospitals.

Dalai Lama near Tibet

NEW DELHI -- Ignoring Chinese protests, the Dalai Lama traveled to a disputed part of India near China's Tibetan border on Sunday as thousands of pilgrims braved cold weather to catch a glimpse of their spiritual leader.

The Dalai Lama, who was sharply criticized by Beijing before the visit, expects to spend five days praying and instructing Buddhist worshippers at a monastery in the northern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. His last visit there was in 2003. China has accused the spiritual leader of making the trip to further the movement for an independent Tibet, a region that accounts for about one-sixth of Chinese territory.

Although Beijing has leveled similar accusations for decades, its charges have become more pointed since deadly anti-government riots broke out in March 2008 across the Tibetan plateau.

Rebels reject Saudi claim

DUBAI -- Saudi Arabia said Sunday that it had regained control of territory seized by Yemeni rebels in an incursion last week.

The rebels denied they had lost control of Jabal Dukhan and said the kingdom's offensive was continuing, with Yemeni villages the target of heavy bombing. Saudi-owned al-Arabiya television reported that Saudi military operations near the border were still in progress.

The world's top oil exporter has become increasingly anxious about instability in Yemen, which is facing a Shiite insurgency in the north, separatist sentiment in the south and a growing threat from resurgent al-Qaida fighters.